AS Cebuanos became willing to spend more, the country’s exclusive distributors of Roca, a Spanish brand of premium bathroom space products, felt the market was ready to see all the brand had to offer.
To highlight the best of these products, Cebu Oversea Hardware opened the country’s first Roca showroom at the second level of the Cebu Home and Builders Centre last Friday.
The new showroom features the latest Roca has to offer, including their integrated smart toilets.
Cebu Home and Builders Centre CEO Michael Co said opening the country’s first Roca showroom “recognizes Cebu’s status” as a premiere city in the Philippines.
While Roca has been sold in the country for about 10 years now, Co said they felt this year was the right time to open a full showroom, with the country’s vibrant economy and the sprouting housing developments. Co said they felt it was time to “cater to higher aspirations.”
Leo Tseung, Roca regional sales manager, sees a good chance of increased sales in the Philippines, citing the increased brand awareness in the country. He admitted that the Philippines was not the most active market for them in the past. But with the rising middle class in recent years, more Filipinos are able to afford Roca’s products. That includes its In-Wash smart toilet, which retails for P170,000.
Tseung, who conducted a demonstration of the toilet’s features, showed how the In-Wash toilet operated on remote control panels that activated the flush systems and nozzle. It also has an integrated radar to detect a person so it can open or put down a toilet seat automatically.
High tech features
Roca has its own app for iOS users so they can key in their preferred settings on their smartphones.
Tseung said the smart toilet senses if someone if seated on the toilet, can activate a half-flush and full flush automatically, and has self-clean and anti-bacterial settings that the user can choose to activate.
Roca carries a full line of bathroom fixtures that are on full display at the showroom. They will also launch a shorwoom in Manila within the year.
Architect James Co said that Roca’s strategic core values of wellness, design, sustainability and innovation are at the forefront of their company’s strategic values as well, which makes them ideal partners.
Cebu Oversea Hardware has been serving the Visayas and Mindanao for over 50 years, starting out as a basic hardware supply store supplying building construction materials to finishing products.
It opened its first Cebu Home and Builders Centre in May 2002, expanding their product line to include do-it-yourself products, lifestyle toilet and bath solutions, lighting solutions and furniture.